Happy 30th Anniversary to The UMC’s’ debut album Fruits of Nature, originally released October 15, 1991.
The UMC’s were a group that arrived just a little too late for their own good. The Staten Island duo made up of “Kool” Kim Sharpton and Carlos “Haas G” Evans, made the type of hip-hop that could have potentially appealed to a wide audience but didn’t pander to pop sensibilities. Alas, when they released their debut album Fruits of Nature 30 years ago, the genre that they loved was really becoming super serious, and the project never received the widespread props that it deserved.
As misunderstood as the UMC’s often were, it’s almost fitting that the title of their debut album contains a “typo” of sorts. According to Kim, the album is supposed to be titled Fruits Uv Nature, so that it forms an acronym for “F.U.N.” As the “Universal MCs,” the duo focus on having fun throughout Fruits of Nature, making family-friendly, feel-good hip-hop.
Fruits of Nature remains a largely underappreciated release. Both emcees, especially Kool Kim, are gifted on the mic. The production, handled by the team of Haas G and RNS, is soulful, relying on early funk grooves, late ’60s jazz loops, and prog rock samples. They presented themselves as two young men working to realize their dreams and set a good example for their peers. They released their first single “Invaders of My Fruit Basket” independently back in 1989, and eventually linked with Wild Pitch Records.
The UMC’s were hip-hop’s most prominent Staten Island residents before the Wu-Tang Clan emerged. The group had grown up with many members of the Clan, sharing connections with them in their younger years. According to Kim, he and Haas worked at the Statue of Liberty with Method Man, Inspectah Deck, and U-God before they all made it big. RNS is said to be one of the people who taught RZA how to make beats. The duo even slide in references to “Wu-Tang” throughout the album.
Sadly, the UMC’s have become the target of derision for a lot of hip-hop laymen over the years, who regarded the group as corny, or tantamount to De La Soul clones. This has always been an unfair comparison; even though there’s a certain innocence to Fruits of Nature that’s similar to De La’s 3 Feet High and Rising (1989), the UMC’s’ content wasn’t nearly as abstract.
The source of much of the dismissal of the UMC’s is likely due to the video for “Blue Cheese,” Fruits of Nature’s first single and the group’s biggest hit. The video certainly didn’t do the UMC’s any favors. When it’s not showing Kim and Haas dancing on the set that looks like the hybrid of Pee Wee’s Playhouse and Land of the Lost, it features the duo scouring the earth in search of “Blue Cheese.” “Blue Cheese” turns out to be a gold-tooth sporting, gold-chain wearing puppet that resembles a mix of frog and dog and has the coloring of the nominal salad dressing. It was not a good look.
Of course, the song itself is still incredibly dope. I still have no idea what “Blue Cheese” actually means in this context, but I do know that Haas and Kim’s exuberance is irresistible as the pair bounce across the beat. RNS and Haas do an excellent job putting together the tracks, sampling elements of The Delegation’s “Oh Honey” and the drum-break from Funkadelic’s “You’ll Like It Too,” while adding flashes of horns, breakdowns and bridges.
“One to Grow On,” the album’s second single and opening track, is another enjoyable hip-hop romp. It sounds like the template for every US3 song ever recorded, except that Kim and Haas are much better emcees and the beat is one of the best of the era. Over samples of piano and horns from Blue Mitchell’s “Good Humour Man,” the pair describe how their music exists as a positive beacon to elevate their listeners’ consciousness
The UMC’s are great at delivering hip-hop music designed to appeal to people of all ages, as they take a decidedly less aggressive approach to their music. “You Got Back” features the two celebrating their friendship and describing how they continue to look out for each other in potentially dicey situations. “Never Never Land” sounds completely bizarre when written down, as Haas and Kim transform themselves into Peter Pans, leading children of the “U-Land” (portrayed by Berkeley Carroll Summer Choir) on countless adventures. The mix of string samples and the neck-snapping drum break give the song a dream-like quality.
The album’s love song, “Feelings,” is almost wholesome. The pair celebrate mature, emotionally fulfilling relationships, which were rarely discussed on any sort of record back in the early 1990s. Kim’s joy even makes him break out into a chorus of “Singing In the Rain” mid-verse, which was the type of thing you didn’t hear too often in early ’90s hip-hop records.
On “Morals,” the two recount tales of losing close friends to street violence. Here the pair place the onus on their friends lacking the proper principles to steer them towards the right path. During his verse, Kim ponders if his friend’s strict upbringing caused him to rebel and “[fight] to be free” by pursuing money through illegal means.
The UMC’s cover less serious conceptual fare. They mock liars and phonies on “Jive Talk,” talking shit over a fiddle and horn sample from The Flock’s “Tired of Waiting.” “Woman Be Out” serves as the inverse of “Feelings,” as each recount their interactions with women trying to use them for their money and fame. They’re also capable of delivering braggadocio-oriented lyrics as well. The two describe their commitment to their craft on the aptly titled “Kraftworks,” while “Any Way the Wind Blows” is just some rugged hip-hop, with Haas and Kim delivering potent rhymes over a dusty sample of Al Green’s “Here I Am.”
“Swing It to the Area” showcases the pair’s versatility of styles, as it starts as an upbeat, horn-heavy jaunt, with Haas exercising great breath control as he raps, “From the flow, poison with a smooth projection / Chewing like a ’noid infection,” while Kim touts “a new style track so you bump it in your Jeep / Straight from the Staten Island, but don’t sleep.” About two-thirds of the way through, the beat flips the sick guitar intro from Tower of Power’s “Cleo’s Back.” Kim is in full beast mode as he raps, “They got the verbs, the phrase, adjust the nouns / But pound for pound, they can’t flow with Kim for 12 rounds / So let’s get ready to rumble, watch as I tumble / Anyone who might stumble.”
“Pass It On” is a funky posse cut, where the pair is joined by homies Kwazi and Prophet, with all rapping over an itchy guitar loop. Both of the guests give decent enough performances, but Haas and Kim are the clear stars. With his verse, Haas shouts out both their own past and the borough’s future as he raps, “Invaders of fruit basket? Caught ya, sneaky / Now you are the subject of my freaky, freaky, freaky, freaky / Wu-Tang flow, oh well, I take a part in all slaughters / And keep the deadly Wu orders.”
Fruits of Nature ends with Kim and Haas celebrating what they then foresaw as the beginning of a long and successful musical career. The fast-paced “Hey Here We Go” is their dis to those who doubted their abilities and counted them out after high school. On the piano-driven “It’s Gonna Last,” the pair outline their work ethic, explaining their deep commitment to making music. “I surround myself with protons, for positivity,” Kim raps. “Electrons I stay far from, ’cause negativity / Tends to detract from my personal pastime / Why drink a 40 when I should be up just writing rhymes?”
Though Fruits of Nature was a reasonable success, the UMC’s apparently didn’t take too well to the misguided perception that they were happy rap goofs. As a result, the duo over-corrected with Unleashed (1994), their sophomore release. Though it’s certainly another solid release, they lay on the hyper-aggression incredibly thick. The group eventually fell out with Wild Pitch after rumors that they assaulted Stu Fine, the label’s president.
Both members of the duo reinvented themselves in the 2000s. Kool Kim transformed into NYOIL, a militantly anti-commercial emcee best known for “Y’all Should All Get Lynched” and his album HoodTreason (2007). Meanwhile, Haas continued to work as a producer, re-naming himself Phantom of the Beats. He has crafted tracks for artists like Ghostface Killah, 50 Cent, and Lil’ Kim.
If Wild Pitch had released Fruits of Nature during the spring or summer, the album would have fit in well with Leaders of the New School’s A Future Without a Past or KMD’s Mr. Hood. Instead, it came out during the fall, at a time when gangsta rap was even more prevalent. But three decades later, the UMC’s’ unbridled happiness and immaculately crafted tracks make the project timeless. In an artform increasingly permeated by bleakness and moroseness, there ain’t nothing wrong with wanting to have some fun.
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